IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - 16

swivel and tilt from dawn to
dusk to ensure that sunlight
always hits an array of cells
head-on. Despite that complexity,
such PV systems are quickly
becoming more popular in dry,
sunny climes. According to IMS
Research, in Wellingborough,
England, 90 megawatts will

Chip Twists
Light
Researchers in the
United Kingdom and
China have made a
microchip capable
of emitting laser
beams that twist.
The lasers have a
peculiar property
known as orbital
angular momentum,
which many experts
think will let telecom
firms pack a greater
number of channels
of data onto the
same optical fiber.
The chip could
replace a large
system of multiple
bulky modulators.
The invention came
even as skepticism
intensified that the
use of orbital angular
momentum in the RF
part of the spectrum
would actually
improve data rates
[see "A New Twist on
Radio Waves," IEEE
Spectrum, May 2012].

efficiencies Solar Junction is now
seeing, this gap could widen.
"Cells are one of the main
contributors to the total system
costs," explains Jemma Davies of
IMS. "By increasing efficiency and
concentration, the output per cell
is increased, and the cost per watt
decreases." -Richard Stevenson

The Cost of Christmas Tablets

Thinking of buying a tablet for the holidays? The world's
top tech companies sure hope so. How much they'll
make up front from that purchase varies quite a bit,
according to preliminary teardowns by IHS iSuppli.
Amazon
Kindle Fire HD
(Wi-Fi only/
16 gigabytes)
Materials: US $165
Price: $199
Margin*: $34

Samsung
Galaxy Note
10.1 (Wi-Fi
only/16 GB)
Materials: $260
Price: $499
Margin*: $239

Apple iPad
Mini (Wi-Fi
only/16 GB)
Materials: $188
Price: $329
Margin*: $141

New iPad
(Wi-Fi only/
16 GB)
Materials: $306
Price: $499
Margin*: $193

Google
Nexus 7
(16 GB)
Materials: $159
Price: $249
Margin*: $90

Microsoft
Surface RT
(32 GB with
touch cover)
Materials: $271
Price: $599
Margin*: $328

left: XInlun caI, JIan WeI Wang, mark g. thomPson, & sIyuan yu

news
briefs

be deployed in 2012, rising to
1.2 gigawatts by 2016. This rapid
growth is spurred by the low
cost of the energy that these
systems generate over their
lifetime. The multijunction
PV systems can undercut
silicon cells by 12 percent in
some locations, and at the

* Less intellectual property, manufacturing, and other costs. Source: IHS iSuppli (Figures are rounded to the nearest dollar. Prices are as of 6 November 2012)

16

NA * Ieee Spectrum * december 2012

spectrum.ieee.org



http://spectrum.ieee.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Spectrum December, 2012

IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - Cover1
IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - Cover2
IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - 1
IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - 2
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IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - Cover3
IEEE Spectrum December, 2012 - Cover4
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